Solar bottle lights in a Ugandan kitchen | 50W "Plastic bottle light"

[CommentsSurvey]

Three bottles wired together is really smart! How do you keep the rain out from around the bottles? Does it not rain that much in this area of Africa? Great idea, and she came up with it herself from watching a Liter of Light video. Brilliant!

[sendacow]

@CommentsSurvey You just thatch over them and the rain runs over. There is a rainy season, so it can rain really hard. We will ask Helen how she gets on.

[CommentsSurvey]

@sendacow : do you mean you thatch AROUND them? Let me know how the thatch works around the bottles, without using any kind of caulk. I'm gathering lots of info on these wonderful solar bottle bulbs. Thanks, CatherineTodd2 at gmail

[ElveeKaye]

@CommentsSurvey Could you use mud as a sort of caulking around the bottles, to seal them in better? Or make a homemade concrete from crushed limestone rock (if any is available)?

[sendacow]

@ElveeKaye You could do that. Helen may be trying these things soon.

[CommentsSurvey]

@ElveeKaye : I have no idea how mud would hold up on a roof exposed directly to hard rains and storms, or if homemade concrete would not crack under these conditions. I'm sure this enterprising woman will figure out something and I hope it gets posted here!

[sendacow]

@CommentsSurvey hi, yes, you thatch over and around them.

[ElveeKaye]

You could make larger "windows" by grouping more bottles together. You could also embed them into the mud walls when the house is being constructed, to let in more light from the sides. Attaching cloth flaps (from old clothes or feed sacks) over these windows would serve as shutters if you don't want as much light coming in.

[CommentsSurvey]

@ElveeKaye : I never thought of embedding them into walls to let in light. Great idea!

[sendacow]

@ElveeKaye Good idea, thanks. We're not sure on the lifespan of the water and bottles yet in direct sunlight, but if it proves possible, some farmers can try that out when they build new kitchens.

[ElveeKaye]

@sendacow I know that plastic does eventually break down when exposed to direct sunlight long enough. Not sure about what the chlorine will do to it--plastics tend to be very reactive with many chemicals, and chlorine might cause it to decay faster. However, I'm guessing you would still get many years of use out of the bottles, and they are plentiful enough that replacing them will be easy.

[CommentsSurvey]

@ElveeKaye : It has been suggested that the plastic bottle caps are coated with caulk or covered with a plastic film canister (before digital camera days!) since the caps break down. I don't think bottles themselves degrade very quickly, which is a big problem of PET bottles in landfills. The chlorine is to keep mold from growing in the water, but I wondered what the long-term effects of chlorine would be. Someone said either way, the bottles would probably outlast the roofs!

[CommentsSurvey]

@ElveeKaye : Making "windows" embedded in the walls by grouping more bottles is a great idea. You could do colored water for "stained glass" windows! And as you suggested, if you want curtains, using feed sacks or old cloths - sewing together old t-shirts, for example - could make great curtains What a great idea. Can't wait to try this here in Guatemala.